Tuesday, January 08, 2008

Today I'm reading....


This morning in my reading I came to one of my favorite Psalms. Here's a portion of it:
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Psa 37:1 A Psalm of David. Do not fret because of evildoers, Be not envious toward wrongdoers.
Psa 37:2 For they will wither quickly like the grass And fade like the green herb.
Psa 37:3 Trust in the LORD and do good; Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.
Psa 37:4 Delight yourself in the LORD; And He will give you the desires of your heart.
Psa 37:5 Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him, and He will do it.
Psa 37:6 He will bring forth your righteousness as the light And your judgment as the noonday.
Psa 37:7 Rest in the LORD and wait patiently for Him; Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, Because of the man who carries out wicked schemes.
Psa 37:8 Cease from anger and forsake wrath; Do not fret; it leads only to evildoing.
Psa 37:9 For evildoers will be cut off, But those who wait for the LORD, they will inherit the land.
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I love these verses because they give me instruction, direction, assurance and God's promise of care. By nature I'm a worrier....when there isn't anything to worry about....I worry about that! It has been a weakness for me for years. "What if....?" is the motto of the worriers club of which I was a member for many years.
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Over time I have learned to trust the Lord more, but it's been an odyssey to leave this sin of worry behind and trust God. These verses have helped me do that. I often have to go back to this chapter to get my bearing and remind myself of these basic instructions. What I have learned is this- because of who God is I can relax and trust him. When I worry I'm really saying that God isn't big enough to handle my problems....I'm really insulting the sovereign God who takes care of me every moment.
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In my counseling I have often given these verses to others as the prescription for their problems. It is a great help for those who have yet to quit the worriers club. If you are still a member I encourage you to spend some time meditating on these verses and decide whether God is big enough to handle your life's problems or not.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Okay - now you're confusing me. It's not even Tuesday in my world yet and you've already posted your Tuesday blog. One of us is out of synch.

What happened to your post on the fella with the binoculars and the two red headed birds? I was busy composing my response and now the 'birdman' is gone. I thought there was some great potential to that picture. Did you get any response, too many responses, or did I dream it and it was never really there. Maybe it is really Tuesday - oh, well now it is - 12:10 a.m.

Inquiring minds want to know - LCL

Schweers' Mom said...

I think you are the one who mentioned what the word "fret" means in that Psalms' context - it's like rubbing fabric with your fingers until it wears a hole in it. I should know, I'm the queen o' fretters. I think fretting might even be my spiritual gift. Egad.

I should read this Psalm more often...

Mike Messerli said...

LCL,

thanks for your comments. I will put the picture back up...I took it down because no one responded.

Mike Messerli said...

Lori,

yes, I did preach on that. I forgot. Each time I come to this passage it's like an old friend, and I slow down to bask in the words. Thanks for your reminder.

Anonymous said...

These words were perfectly timed, thanks for the reminder. I definitely needed to hear this. Miss you, let's grab some coffee soon!